Scripture Reading: Galatians 5:1-14

1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. 2 Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. 3 Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. 4 You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. 5 But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. 7 You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? 8 That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. 9 "A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough." 10 I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion will pay the penalty, whoever he may be. 11 Brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. 12 As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves! 13 You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. 14 The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself." (NIV)

In a moment we want to talk about the fruit of religion. First, I want to think about what Paul said in this passage. I love the opening sentence. We were set free by Christ. That’s the basis of everything. But notice, that we were not set free to end up in slavery. We were set free to be free, not slaves to Allah.

There were some Jewish issues that Paul was dealing with in Galatia. Some Jews there were teaching that you had to keep the Old Testament Jewish laws in order to please God. If you didn’t keep the Sabbath you were not pleasing God. If you were not circumcised as the law required, you couldn’t please God. In verse four he makes it very clear that those who are trying to please God by being law-keepers were, instead, violating God’s grace. Instead of pleasing God, they were offending God by treating the sacrifice of Jesus as though it meant nothing.

Verse 6 says, “The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.” Faith counts, and love counts, but law doesn’t. This is quite foreign to the Moslem idea that God is served by means of submission. It is a misunderstanding of God. He wants faith and love.

Verse 13 and 14 are verses that need to be heard today as well. Even though we are free, our freedom motivates us to serve each others. “You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself." (NIV)

It is absolutely necessary that we compare one religion with another. The old idea was that it didn’t really matter what a person believed. What we discovered on September 11^th was that religion does matter. A person’s beliefs are not just private because we all have to share this planet. As long as we all share the Christian concept of doing good to your neighbor, then what particular brand of that belief a person holds is not so important. But when people hold religious views that allow them to kill their neighbor, when war against unbelievers is a core tenet of their faith, then we have a bit of a different situation.

We now know that the old secular idea that religion is not relevant to the public square wasn’t true. We now have to evaluate religion by its fruit. What kind of results does that religion produce? If one of the fruits of Islam is the rubble of the World Trade Center then we need to get some answers about this religion.

Americans need to hold Islam accountable for what it actually produces in the world. Americans need to hold me accountable for what results my religion produces in the world. Just as we have the right to hold Islam accountable for its results, so I expect to be held accountable for Cedar Park’s results in our community.

In Afghanistan, we are seeing Christianity being lived out. First of all, we are seeing the Christian principles relating to “just war” considerations being employed. You can read about what those values are and how they are being employed currently by looking at our web page at http://www.cedarpark.org/library/books.htm There is also an article there on the religious mind of Osama bin Laden which shows the linkage between his faith of Islam and what he is doing in the world. At the same time we are fighting a war, we are airlifting food to the people of Afghanistan. That is nothing less than a Christian idea that you help those who are hurting, even if they are an enemy.

Malaysia is a mostly Moslem nation. They have been criticizing our activity in Afghanistan. At the same time, they persecute Christians in their own country. Because of their religion, they don’t want us to harm a fellow-muslim in Afghanistan, but it is ok for them to persecute Christians and others who are not Moslems in their country. This is the fruit of Islam.

Our government, trying to be religiously neutral, is choosing to refer to the radical element in Islam as terrorists. They want to avoid the religious motivation and deal only with the conduct. I don’t see how it is possible to separate fruit from the tree that grows it. With nearly 200 million Moslems who hold these beliefs, this is not a fringe but is fundamental to Islam. America needs to be asking the Moslem nations some direct questions:

1. Will you agree to abandon the concept of Jihad? For them, it is a fundamental tenet of their faith. In my Wednesday night, October 23^rd, notes you will see a defining of the Moslem concept of Jihad as the state of conflict with any state which does not pay ransom to Islam. In today’s world, this must be abandoned. We simply cannot accept religiously motivated war on those who do not accept one’s religion.

2. Will you accept the right of people to freedom of religion? That must include the right to practice one’s religion without being attacked or killed and to build buildings in which to do that. This freedom must exist in all Moslem nations and be protected by the government. It does not now exist. It is such a fundamental of civilized society,

3. Will you accept the human rights of women, striking from the Koran the right of a man to beat his wife if he thinks she might disobey him?[1]

These are religious questions that determine whether Islam is ready to create citizens who can sustain the burdens of civilization. Indeed, the answers to these questions determine whether Moslems can sustain the American system of government. If they cannot answer in the affirmative, why should we trust them to be loyal to the America that we presently know?

We are asking that the loop of religion be closed. By that I mean, there must be a connection between what one believes and what one does. In the end, they cannot be separated and the religion has to be known by what it does.

Of course, we have neither the power nor influence to impact these larger questions regarding America and the Moslem nations. What we can impact is how we personally represent Christianity. We need to think about the way in which faith impacts action.

Who God is, his divine nature, and holy attributes, are being seen at Cedar Park. Unlike the Moslems, God did not call us to submission, but to love. The very first goal that we have is to learn to fully love God. A good Moslem might obey Allah and live what we call a moral life out of submission. A good Christian would do so out of love. God loves me, and I love God. He is my father, therefore I will live a holy life because I know that it pleases God.

The Christian conception of freedom is related to God’s love. God loves us and gives us freedom. Our text, in verse 1, reminds us, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” The appeal to Christian holiness is based upon what God has done for us. He loves us. We cannot sin against that love. We are free. We must use that freedom rightly. But even if we do not, the matter is not resolved by coercion.

If we say we love God, we need to close the loop and show it. Everything in Christianity flows from a love of God. This includes our love for each other. Our second purpose is increasingly love others by acts of mercy especially for the poor, bruised and broken-hearted. We love others because God loves us. More importantly, we must show it.

When we worship, it comes from our response to his love. When we build a school that helps children and families to do well in faith and in life, it is because of love. We know that God loves people and wants them to do well. When we care for poor people, giving them a chance to make it, it comes from love because God loves the poor and wants them to be protected and shown dignity. When we make sure that good mental health-care is available even to the poor, it is because of love. No matter how bad off you are, you are a person of dignity who should be given full respect and as much help as possible. This all reflects God.

When we devote ourselves to training children in Hiz kids how to sing and to enjoy beauty we are helping them see the beauty and love of God. On a day like today, as you look at the beautiful art of artfest you are seeing something of God. He is a God of beauty and beauty honors him.

As Christians, our very lives and conduct represent God and our faith. The world has a right to inspect what we do here in this church. Paul said a minister had to have a good reputation even of those outside the church.[2] How a man treats his wife reflects on the faith. When we see Moslems beating women because their veils slipped as they were walking, we don’t want to be Moslems. When you are faithful to your spouse, you make your kids and others who see your family want to serve God. When you are unfaithful, why would anyone want your religion?

This is all we control of this world—just ourselves and this church. It may not seem like much, but what we do here is far more important than we realize. We are shaping the world’s conception of God. They know our God by how we conduct ourselves. It’s important that we let the world see Christianity for what it really is. I want individual Moslems to know that we love them and will protect their civil rights in this country even though they don’t protect our civil rights in their countries. I want Moslems to see Christianity and what it builds, then compare that to Islam and what it builds.

We are loved by God, so we invite him into our lives. We let him lovingly direct our actions.

We love other people, especially the poor and weak, because Jesus loved us when we were in that condition.

We refresh our faith by regular acts of devotion such as prayer, fasting, worship, and the spiritual disciplines. And finally, we join with others to build the church through giving, involvement, and evangelism. We endeavor to create in this community, and in the world, a church that shows the glory of God. We want God’s church to reflect God’s glory, majesty, as well as his mercy and love.

[1] "Men have authority over women because Allah has made the one superior to the other, and because they spend their wealth to maintain them. Good women are obedient. They guard their unseen parts because Allah has guarded them. As for those from whom you fear disobedience, admonish them and send them to their beds apart and beat them. Then if they obey you, take no further action against them. Allah is high, supreme." p360 of the Penguin edition of the Koran.

[2] 1 Tim 3:7 “He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil's trap.” (NIV)